The Art of Taking
by afirebending-girl
Summary: "It's not to say she hadn't a time or two lusted for Mai, but in the end, there was no such thing as love to Azula." MaiZula One Shot, with hints of Maiko. Rated T for slight sexual content.


**A/N: Hi there! So, this is my first A:TLA one-shot. Feel free to read, review, and leave criticisms/requests! Drop me a message, whatever. Hope you enjoy! Disclaimer: Avatar the Last Airbender is not mine, nor do I claim any of it's characters, themes, etc, etc. **

The horizon was aflame from the setting sun. Puffy white clouds were streaked through with crimsons and bright oranges, casting a warm glow over the imperial courtyard. The immaculately trimmed blades of grass were golden-tipped and flattened under the weight of a recently reunited couple. The reinstated prince and his girlfriend were laying, nearly cheek-to-cheek, staring at the flaming sky and whispering to one another.

Although her view was partially obscured, Azula could still see them from her window. The love-birds made her sick_. Look at them_, she thought harshly, her lips twisted into a disgusted sneer. How anyone could fall for someone as unreliable and untalented as her brother was beyond her, but the fact that _Mai_ of all people—a girl she'd considered her friend from a young and tender age—stupefied the princess completely.

What could someone as beautiful as Mai, see in someone as wretchedly wasteful as an ex-exiled Prince, profoundly scarred and obviously inferior, such as Zuko was? The only possible reason Azula could decide on was that Zuko was certainly as boring as Mai was. But did equality in enthusiasm (or, in this case, lack thereof) really make such a strong relationship? What was she missing?

The princess tired of watching the happy couple murmur to one another as the sun smoldered the horizon. Her stomach churned at the very sight of them. She loathed that someone could love her brother more than her; only one other woman ever had, and where was she now?

With a sigh of aggravation, Azula exited her bedroom and stalked into the courtyard. Approaching her brother and friend, she stopped abruptly, fists folded on her hips, malicious eyes narrowing. It didn't take long for the two to sense her presence, and glance up at her from beneath the shadow she casted. The princess towered over them, her nose wrinkled in distaste. Before either could speak, she said in a voice as sickly-sweet as honey and every bit as sticky with underlying motives, "Mai, a word?"

It pleased the princess to know that even though Mai loved Zuko, she obeyed her. Of course, it wasn't any consolation. The dark-haired beauty refused to be second to her brother, in anyone's mind, under any circumstances. She watched as Mai rose, deferentially, her raven hair swinging like silk over her shoulders. With a parting glare at her brother, Azula led Mai out of the courtyard, back into the palace.

Once they were out of earshot, Mai droned in her usual monotone, "Is this going to take long?" Azula opted not to answer, and continued leading the way to her bedroom.

"Really," Mai tried again, when she gained no response. "Can you make this quick? I was in the middle of something."

The princess scoffed, but said nothing on the matter. She sauntered into her bedroom, paused by the doorway, and waited for miss tall, pale, and dreary to follow her in. Mai stepped inside, unquestioningly, and merely arched an eyebrow when Azula pushed the door shut with her palm.

"What's this about?" Mai pressed, thin brows furrowing in confusion and slight agitation. Azula's golden eyes glinted knowingly, as she made her way over to her bed, leaning against one of the intricately carved posts.

"Oh, Mai," The princess started, her voice colored with false sincerity. "I hate seeing you with my brother."

"No one said you had to like it." The stolid girl muttered, shrugging her narrow shoulders.

Azula continued as if her friend hadn't spoken. "Really, you could do so much better."

This earned a simple eye roll, but no retort. The prodigy of the Fire Nation pressed her argument.

"I don't see why you fell for him at all, really. Not when there was a much more nobler prize to gain. To covet." As she spoke, the sadistic girl pushed herself up from where she'd been leaning, walking at a slow, deliberate pace towards Mai, who now shifted her weight nervously.

"What are you talking about, Azula?" the older girl asked, her tone caught between annoyance and confusion. Her composure remained, although the edges of her impassive mask were starting to crinkling, laying way to pure ambiguity.

"Oh, don't play stupid, Mai. You and I both know you figure things out pretty quickly." The princess paused, brushing a strand of inky black hair behind her friend's ear and leaning forwards. Her tone lowered to a whisper, her scarlet lips grazed Mai's ear as she spoke. "There's someone more worthy of your affections. Someone very, _very_ close to you." A sinister chuckle escaped her, and she loosely wrapped her arms around the blade-toting assassin's pale neck, reaching up one hand to knit her spindly fingers in straight, black locks of hair. She pressed her lips once, twice, three times against Mai's neckline, delighting in the shiver it earned her.

"Azula—" Mai choked, fighting to keep her breathing even and her heart rate steady. Azula could sense she was close to winning Mai over, and didn't hesitate in continuing to pursue her long-time friend.

"You've always known there was something better to aim for, Mai." She whispered, her hot breath tickling the hollow of Mai's insipid throat. "And you've always had impeccable aim."

The older girl's knees nearly gave out then; her entire body trembled with long-repressed desire, and a gasp of need slipped out of her parted lips. Azula smirked victoriously, cupping Mai's cheek and turning her head. Their lips met, parted and burning, and a flame crept up Azula's spine as Mai slipped her tongue into her mouth.

The pair stumbled back onto her bed, Mai clumsier than usual, Azula dominate as always. She was quick to claim the top, straddling the dark-haired, dark-eyed beauty and working her hands beneath the thick folds of Mai's robes. Each gasp and whimper that slipped from her friend's full lips filled her with a surge of triumph and desire. With little trouble she had slipped off her companion's robes, and discarded her own armor. She could tell by the way the girl beneath her writhed and how her eyelids fluttered that this was something she had thought about before.

And really, who could blame her? If you hadn't considered the sweet possibility of earning Azula's affection, you were either dim-witted or psychotic. She was sure many a person imagined her flaming touch; imagined the way her hot lips would caress their skin; imagined how her teeth and nails would leave half-moon imprints along their arms and down their body. Mai was, surely, no different. The way her thin body stretched; porcelain skin beading with sweat and desire nearly tangible.

Azula did not disappoint. Her lips worked their way along the naked form beneath her, her hands tightened around small, firm breasts. Her breath ticked taut muscles and her tongue earned more than a few moans from its doings.

Mai herself returned a few actions, desperate to please her princess, anxious to revel in the pleasure she'd dreamt of in the darkest recesses of her already-darkened mind; eager to brush aside the cobwebs she'd allowed to build up on such fantasies. Azula allotted a few moans to utter forth from herself, but never completely succumbed to the desire that burned in her stomach. She remained completely in control of the situation—the way she'd planned to all along. Only when both girls were laying, winded and heated, covers pulled up over their smooth breasts and sticking to their slender frames- only then did the princess allow herself to truly gloat.

Even the thing that loved Zuko the most was substandard to her own will. Even his loyal, loving girlfriend had given herself all too quickly to the fire nation's princess and rightful heir. Azula could take anything she wanted, and not only would it be easy to obtain, but the object would come willingly. Taking Mai had been all too easy—it had proven something she already knew to be true.

She was superior to her brother. She was superior to the world. She could have anything she ever wanted, and even the things she didn't. It's not to say she hadn't a time or two lusted for Mai, but in the end, there was no such thing as love to Azula. There was only power and purpose. She had a purpose for people, and once she'd received what she wanted to, she exonerated them and moved on to the next lackey in line.

The sky had darkened. Zuko had probably gone back to his room by now. The corners of her crimson lips twisted into a cruel smirk as she thought of how her brother probably lay, angry and alone on his bed, while she resided not too far away, content and naked in bed with his girlfriend. It made her feel all the more powerful, utterly confident, and irrevocably invincible. Content with her triumph and the warm body curled under her sheets, Azula turned to her side, closed her golden eyes, and fell into a blissful sleep.


End file.
